The People of God and the Lay Vocation
The People of God is composed, for the most part, of lay faithful: all the baptized who have not received the sacrament of Holy Orders nor made religious vows. Christ calls them as the Church, not only to be recipients of the Good News of Salvation, but also to be active agents of evangelization in the world. Each baptized person is invited to sow the Gospel in the “vineyard of God,” which is the society in which they live, exercising an indispensable evangelizing task.
As the Lord reminds us in the Gospel:
“You too go into my vineyard” (Mt. 20:3–4)
“Go into all the world and proclaim the Good News to the whole creation” (Mk. 16:15; cf. ChL 33)
Baptism: Source of the Lay Vocation
Through Baptism, the faithful are grafted into Christ and receive a threefold vocation:
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Priestly: to offer one’s life as a spiritual sacrifice, sanctifying daily life through acts of love and service.
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Prophetic: to be witnesses to the truth of Christ in words and actions, proclaiming the Gospel consistently in every sphere of life.
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Royal: to participate in building society according to the values of the Kingdom of God, being leaven of justice and peace in public life.
According to Lumen Gentium, the laity are called to seek the Kingdom of God in their daily life, ordering temporal affairs according to the spirit of Jesus Christ. They act as “leaven” that sanctifies the world from within, participating in the mission of the Church in social, family, and professional life. This vocation must be constantly fostered by pastors in the particular Churches, helping the laity to discover their identity and mission in the world.
The lay vocation as mission
Each layperson is called to transform his or her environment, bringing faith to every dimension of life:
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In work, bearing witness to honesty, excellence, and service.
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In politics and economics, promoting justice, solidarity, and the common good.
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In science, art, and culture, illuminating creativity with Christian values.
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In family and community, sowing love, respect, and fraternity.
Being a layperson is neither secondary nor passive; it is an active and concrete vocation that requires formation, prayer, and commitment. Every Christian, in daily life, is called to be a sign of the Kingdom of God in the world, fulfilling his or her mission of evangelization from his or her own reality and exercising the threefold priestly, prophetic, and royal function, as Lumen Gentium teaches.